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OBowl wants to expand its selection pool

They held a BCS meeting in Chicago to discuss preliminary plans about how the new 4-team, multi-bowl mini-college football playoff is going to work when it begins in three years.

It’s early yet, so there is a lot of tweaking to be done. But one area that will move quicker than the others is the Orange Bowl match-up.

The OBowl–which already has a spot in the BCS semifinal Football Final Four rotation–is trying to finalize its business in the years that it is not in the Final Four mix.

The ACC champion is locked into one slot and there is wide-spread speculation that either Notre Dame or a representative from the SEC or Big Ten will lock in the other spot.

According to sources familiar with the process that may indeed be the case, but the Orange Bowl is arguing to expand the pool of opponents for the ACC champion to include the highest ranked available team from any conference, which would also include the Big East champion–with provisions.

“The Orange Bowl doesn’t have the final call on this,” said the source. “That will be the ACC’s decision, but the Orange Bowl has always taken the attitude of getting the highest ranked team available and it would like to continue to at least have that option.”

The Big East champion has basically lost its seat at the BCS table, unless the champion can also post credentials which meet minimum BCS standards, which means a ranking in the Top 12 of the final polls and even that may be shaky.

And the Orange Bowl, which has been force-fed Big East champions without qualifying BCS rankings, is delighted to have the security of teams from power conferences such as the Big Ten and SEC and a BCS qualifying ND team in the group.

But it also wants some wiggle room– let’s say that in a Cinderella type season a Louisville or Central Florida has a 12-0 record and is ranked No. 5–outside of the Final Four mix–and the best record from the Big Ten and SEC representative and Notre Dame is a 3 loss team.

The Orange Bowl, which has been having ticket selling issues in recent years, wants to maximize its selling potential and at least have to option to choose from a larger pool.

With that in mind, before the deal is officially signed–which will include minimum number of appearances for SEC, Big Ten and Notre Dame over the length of the contract, the Orange Bowl wants to put in a line in the contract that if a team has a certain BCS ranking–say Top 6–and is available, the OB wants the OPPORTUNITY to select it.

“The Orange Bowl is very happy with the deal that is being proposed,” said one source. “It just wants a little bigger pool to choose from. That’s the only thing that is preventing this deal from being signed.”

Whether it gets any concessions from the conferences remains to be seen.

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The Big 12 is having a good year at QB. With Texas’ David Ash throwing 7 TDS for 700 yards and 0 interceptions in three games, the Longhorns are off to a good start, but TCU with QB Casey Pachall, West Virginia with Geno Smith, and Kansas State with Collin Kliein all have been explosive coming out of the gate. And Texas Techs Seth Dodge is leading the country with 12 TDs…Did you know department. Only four active coaches have won 200 or more games. South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier, Texas coach Mack Brown, Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer and Nevada’s Chris Ault….Boston College should be called Linebacker U. Seven former Eagle linebackers are playing in the NFL. And BC senior Nick Clancy is leading the country after 3 games with 43 tackles. Beating Oklahoma in any venue has always been tough in the Bob Stoops era. Beating the Sooners at home? Well, under Stoops, the Sooners are 77-3 at home…Did you know, Part 2: Missouri at South Carolina on Saturday will match two teams from Columbia.

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They start growing Michigan Men early. Here’s the latest great tidbit courtesy of our college football fanatic friend Paul Kenney.

We could tell the story about the kid from Oklahoma who is now a “Michigan man”, but let Paul tell it.

“At the beginning of the school year, 5-year-old Cooper Barton decided to show his support for his favorite college football team; the Michigan Wolverines.

The tyke wore a tee-shirt, with the word Michigan, emblazoned across his tiny chest.

When the kid showed up at school, you guessed it; the shirt caused a kerfuffle of epic proportions.

The school that Cooper attends, doesn’t allow the wearing of t-shirts with team logos (must be a gang related thing), so this “dangerous” 5 year old, was told by the principal, to turn the “offending” shirt inside out.

A 5-year-old mind you!

The word spread, and Michigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon, got wind of the kid’s plight, instantly realized that a “Michigan Man,” albeit a 5-year-old one, was being done wrong, and took immediate corrective action.

The AD reached out to Cooper, and his family, sending them double-sided tee-shirts.

He then followed up that gesture with a phone call, and an invitation to attend last week’s Wolverine-UMass game, as guests of the university.

At half time, the 100,000 Ann Arbor faithful rose as one, in recognition that this 5-year-old kid from Oklahoma was indeed, an honorary member of the tribe of; Maize and Blue.

This weekend, let’s see which teams leave its alumni proudly waving its victorious colors, and which, perform so poorly, its alums, quietly file out of the stadium, covering any, and all, signs of school allegiance.”’